Pokemon XY: Dimensional Darkness
by MarioMover
Summary: When two boys are thrown in to the world of Pokemon, these two boys (and a few others) have one goal - to capture the love of Serena, a young, cute female trainer. But when chaos ensues, what will happen? [Contains Amourshipping and other moments]
1. Chapter 1 - Just Getting Started

_Before we start I wanted to give a few special shoutouts! Thanks to Kamil Poke ( amourshipper on Twitter) and DarkNightmare ( darknightmared on Twitter) for the ideas and letting me use their names/likenesses for this story! You really should go check them out, they're awesome people!_

 _The fourth wall will be broken. Quite a bit. I hope that doesn't scare you. It shouldn't though._

 _To simplify the story, I will refer to Kamil Poke as simply "Kameel" and DarkNightmare as "Jeremi". Just to make it less confusing._

 _No, Pokemon XY: Mirror Adventures is not dead. It's just on hold until I can finish a bit of this. Don't worry, though, this is just a fun side project for me, not a full-time story. It might become one though. If I feel like it and if I don't get too caught up with life and Mirror Adventures._

"Come on, already!" Kameel yelled at his 3DS. His friend Jeremi sat across from him, holding his own 3DS. The two were in to an intense Pokemon battle, and neither of them looked like they wanted to back down. One of them was going to lose, but neither of them would accept defeat. Kameel had attempted to land Hypnosis on Jeremi's Klefki, his last Pokemon, but the move never hit. "Please, just land already!"

"I may only have one Pokemon left, but I can sure turn the tables!" Jeremi triumphantly told his friend. He had all the confidence one could have with such little hope. "And why are you trying to put me to sleep anyway? It's my last Pokemon, and you still have four left!" Kameel sighed for a moment, and then stopped attempting Hypnosis.

"I don't really know, I just thought if you were asleep I could stop you from attacking for a bit, just to stall you off and get enough damage to KO you," Kameel responded. Jeremi facepalmed for a moment and informed his friend, "In all the time you spent trying to put me to sleep, you could've easily won the match."

Kameel hit himself in the face. "How could I be so stupid?!" He looked at his little screen. He had a plan in mind - one move that could easily claim victory. He withdrew his Munna and sent out a Delphox.

"I see, you're getting it now," he said, somewhat complimenting the other boy. He smiled. "Congratulations, I see no way for me to win this match."

"Ha, you're right! You're done for after this quick little...Fire Blast!" As the move registered itself on the screens of the devices, a line of text saying "Klefki fainted!" was shown temporarily. After having a small celebration, they continued another battle. They made some progress, each side losing some, gaining some. Jeremi's long brown hair had started to sway back and forth, and Jeremi himself was becoming upset. He was being beaten...again! Only this time, he had thought he had made an unstoppable team!

"Gah! I can't win!" Jeremi angrily yelled, throwing his DS at the ground as hard as he could. Pieces of plastic and metal lay all over the ground, with wires mixed in and sparks flying. "Whoa, whooa!" Jeremi remarked. "Those are some...eh..pretty intense sparks right there..." he seemed to be distracted from the fact that he just destroyed $200 worth of modern-day technology. Soon, the bright orange sparks started to change color.

"They're...pink!" cried Kameel. Soon, the sparks and particles swirled together. Some sort of void was forming right in front of their very eyes. They started to feel themselves getting sucked in to something - possibly the void. Soon, they heard the sound of metal clanking together. Jeremi's smashed game had reassembled itself! Soon, the purple void decided to house itself inside the 3DS console. Soon, they found themselves getting vacuumed into the void.

"AAAAAGGHHH!" they both screamed, only to be muffled by the party going on down the street. No one heard them.

"Uh...uggh..." Jeremi was groaning. He was dizzy, and the only thing he could describe was a "round, smooth thing in his hand". As he struggled to open his eyes, a faint vision of a Pokemon Center had been seen. Kameel was still asleep. "Where am I?" he asked, looking around. "Oh, wait, this is a Pokemon Center. But what's this in my hand? Oh! It's...a Poke Ball!" Jeremi spotted his friend across the room, and was determined to wake him up. He tiptoed through all the beds of sleeping Pokemon, and lightly shook Kameel. Kameel stirred a bit, but seemed to waken.

"Where a-"

"Shhhh!" Jeremi cut him off. "We need to be quiet!" Kameel slipped out of bed and headed towards the door, only to nearly run in to Nurse Joy.

"Oh, I see you're all better! That's great!" she told the two. "If you could wait outside in the waiting room for a minute, please."

"Of course!" they said in unison.

"Oh, so polite," the nurse said to herself.

The boys walked out in to a room full of trainers and their Pokemon. But a certain sound brought something to their attention -

"Pika pika!"

The boys looked around. There was Ash Ketchum, from the town of Pallet in the Kanto region.

"Is it really him?" Kameel asked in amazement. The trainer that everyone wanted to be was standing right in front of them! They looked around some more, as to not stare at Ash. Instead, they found something _better_ to stare at instead. They sat down though, as to not look strange.

"Ooh, she's cute!" Kameel remarked quietly. He was looking at a young trainer and performer by the name of Serena, who had started her journey in the Kalos region with Ash. He had seen her somewhere, but he didn't remember.

"Wow!" said Jeremi. "She's so perfect!" They sensed Serena looking their way, but before she did they stopped staring. How awkward it would be to be caught staring at a girl.

"Hello, boys!" the nurse came out.

"Hello!" they responded together.

"So, you're all better, that means...uh-huh...let me see.." Joy typed away on her computer, until she finally looked up at the two again. "You're all free to go!"

"Alright!" exclaimed Jeremi.

"Thank you!" Kameel said.

"No problem!" replied Nurse Joy cheerfully. Just then, the two walked out. Just then, they heard a familiar voice...

"Hey!" a voice called.

"Huh?" the two boys looked back. There, standing right behind them, was Ash Ketchum and Serena. Ash had a Poke Ball in his hand, while Braixen stood next to Serena.

"I haven't seen you guys around!" Ash told the two.

"Heh, yeah," replied Kameel, trying to keep his cool. If he wanted to impress Serena, he was going to have to try hard. "It's a funny story, actually."

"Huh?" Serena said. "Sounds interesting, let's hear it!"

"Yeah!" Ash said. "Not much has happened around here today, so this would be nice!" The boys explained their story as the trainers listened intently.

"So...you're from another world? That's so cool!" Ash said.

"Pika-pika!" added the trainer's Pikachu, Ash's best buddy.

"Wow!" Serena remarked. "I've never heard of something like that happening! We should tell Clemont and Bonnie when they get back!"

"Yeah, of course!" Jeremi said, trying to stay calm. He too wanted to capture the love of the performer girl.

 _And with that, our chapter ends! I tried to make it a bit longer this time, so I hope you enjoyed it. Looks like there's some competition for Serena's love - will friends be friends no more?_


	2. Chapter 2 - Shadows in the Night

_Welcome to chapter 2! Trying to get around 4-5 chapters out until I continue Pokémon XY: Mirror Adventures, I'd like to continue this a bit first. Without any further ado, I present to you...Pokémon XY: A Multi-Dimensional Battle for Love chapter 2!_

"Ash! Serena!" Clemont called.

"Huh?" Kameel looked behind himself. The Lumiose Gym Leader, Clemont, and his little sister Bonnie had returned from...wherever they were. Clemont was considerably slower than everyone else, probably due to the backpack full of trinkets and such that he took with him.

"Clemont, _hurry up!_ " his little sister cheered him on, in a slightly negative fashion. "You're always late and slow!"

"I…*huff*...know, Bonnie," he panted. He sat down, and caught his breath. "Sorry for that, guys."

"It's fine, Clemont," Ash reassured him. "Did you find the parts you needed?"

"Yes, thankfully," he sighed. "Hard to find almost anywhere, luckily the hardware store around here has almost anything!"

"Who are those guys?" Bonnie asked Serena, pointing to Kameel and Jeremi. "I haven't seen them."

"Huh? Oh, yeah, Clemont! These guys!" Ash said (before Serena could say anything), looking at Kameel. "They've got some strange story, for sure!"

"Yeah!" Serena replied, though she was still a bit upset that Ash had cut her off. Kameel and Jeremi explained to them the whole story.

"HUH?!" Clemont was astonished. "Th—that's impossible! You can't just hop worlds like that!"

"Uh, Clemont?..." Serena caught Clemont's attention. "Remember the mirrors?"

"Oh, yeah...I guess it's not impossible, just...unlikely." Clemont was embarrassed that he forgot.

 _Speaking of, I wonder how the mirror me and Serena and Clemont and Bonnie are,_ Ash thought to himself. But he quickly dropped the thought when he heard….

"Dinner's ready!" Clemont had made pasta. He seemed to be good at that, which Ash didn't mind one little bit.

"Wait, where are you guys going to be?" Serena asked Kameel. "You and your friend don't have anywhere to stay, do you?"

"Well, not exactly..." Kameel replied.

Serena looked at Ash, who then looked at Clemont, who then looked at Bonnie. While Kameel and Jeremi wondered what was happening, the group nodded silently.

"Why don't you come with us?" Serena asked the friends. They looked at each other and smiled.

 _Did Serena just invite us…?_ Kameel thought to himself. The thought of her asking them if they wanted to go with them was very pleasing.

"Thank you, that would be awesome!" Jeremi replied. _Maybe I can find a way to impress her…_ he thought. Though they both had a crush on the performer, neither of them knew the other wanted her as well.

"Yeah, thanks!"

"Of course! You've got nowhere to go anyway, and besides, you've got some interesting stories to tell!" Ash happily exclaimed. "They'd be cool to hear!" Bonnie seemed happy too, as did Dedenne and Pikachu.

"Pika pika!"

"De-ne-ne!"

"Luckily, we've got an extra tent for you guys," Clemont informed the boys.

"Thank you guys, really," Kameel said. "This is really nice of you."

"Oh, it's no problem, it's always nice to have some company!" Serena exclaimed, looking at Kameel, which caused him to blush, which he stealthily hid by pretending to cough. Though, Jeremi could see his face was red a bit. Jeremi became a bit upset – he might have some competition.

"Wow, it's already dark!" the little girl exclaimed, petting her Dedenne.

"Yeah, we should probably head to bed," Ash said, looking at Clemont. Clemont nodded.

Ash looked at Serena, who was brushing her Braixen's tail. Braixen flinched a bit as Serena cleaned off it's twig, which it was very protective of. Serena looked back at Ash and smiled, blushing a bit.

"Good night, everyone!" Serena said, as she climbed in to her tent with Bonnie, who was already fast asleep.

"Good night," Ash and Clemont replied, as they got in to their tent.

"Thank you, guys," Kameel and Jeremi added. "And good night!" They quietly got in to their tent, and dozed off peacefully.

Serena hadn't fallen asleep yet, and from what she could tell Ash hadn't either. She could hear tossing and turning going on through another tent, and Kameel and Jeremi had passed out a few hours ago. She snuck out of her tent, as to not disturb Bonnie. She lay down on the cool grass, hoping she could possibly find a bit more peace out in the open – not that it wasn't already quite peaceful. She stealthily grabbed a Poké Ball out of her backpack, which she kept in the tent. Bonnie started to stir and she quickly drew her arm back, so she didn't wake the sleeping child.

"Alright, Eevee, come on out," Serena whispered. A small little Pokémon with white and brown fur appeared in front of her.

"Eee-vee!" the little Pokémon cried. It smiled at it's trainer, rubbing itself on Serena's arm. Serena, in turn, also smiled back. Serena looked at Ash's tent, which was shaking a bit. She ducked down, and held Eevee. She saw some black hair peek out of the flap, and Ash crawled out.

"Hey, Serena," Ash said. "Mind if I join you?"

"Not at all, Ash," Serena said with a light laugh, blushing a bit. Ash grinned and sat down next to the girl. She couldn't stop blushing, and Ash chuckled. Serena put her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes, smiling with rosy cheeks. Ash grinned, and let her rest a bit. Serena started talking in her sleep, and she was stressed about something, mentioning something about "shadow monsters" and "the void". Ash had no idea what she was talking about, but he hugged her rather tightly, as to prevent her from getting too nervous and tossing and turning everywhere. _This feels nice,_ Ash said, as he tightened his hold around Serena. He sighed a bit, and smiled. Then, the trainer in his arms started to get anxious, she was trembling and crying. Ash wanted to wake her up, but the feeling of having her in his arms just felt so... _right_. He didn't want to let go. But he had no choice, as Serena had almost started to scream.

"Wake up, Serena!" he shook the girl. Her eyes darted open, and let out a loud gasp. She was sweating pretty hard, and she was panting. She looked at Ash with teary eyes, and then put her face in his shoulder and started crying again.

"Are you okay?" he asked, the poor scared Serena trying to recover.

"I...I..th-think so…." she said, between sniffles and tears. "Thank you, Ash..."

"Of course, Serena," he said. Eevee had been asleep the whole time, and Ash was glad about that. Serena embraced Ash, smiling and blushing.

"Eevee, retu-" Serena was cut off by some light emitting from Eevee.

"I-it's evolving, Serena!" Ash exclaimed.

"Wha—no! No, Eevee, please!" Serena cried, but just too late. It had already evolved…

"It's….it's an Umbreon now…" Serena said weakly, as tears returned to her eyes once again. Just then, Serena heard something…

"Wake up! Serena, it's 11 in the morning already!"

"Huh?!" Serena was asleep the whole time. _Must have been a huge dream,_ she thought to herself. _That nightmare in a nightmare was strange…_

Ash had seen his own viewpoint of that same dream. _Whoa, that was odd, that last night's dream…_

 _Thanks for reading Chapter 2! What will this dream mean? Is it important? Or is it just something to forget about? We may never know..._


	3. Chapter 3 (part 1) - Cliffhanger

_Welcome to chapter 3! Last chapter, Serena and Ash experienced some strange dreams. But now that that's all over, adventure awaits our heroes and their new friends, Kameel and Jeremi. What will happen? Find out in this chapter of Pokémon XY: A Multi-Dimensional Battle for Love!_

While Ash was off training, and Clemont was doing whatever science-y stuff he was doing, and Bonnie was playing with Pikachu and Dedenne, Kameel and Jeremi were watching Serena practice her performance.

"Ta-da! Finish!" Serena said, posing along with Braixen and Pancham. Eevee had become less shy, and sat in Kameel's lap eating a Poké Puff.

"Wow! That was great!" Kameel exclaimed. "I've never seen anything like it!"

"Indeed, I enjoyed it. You'll win your next Tripokalon for sure!"

"Hehe, thanks, guys," Serena responded, blushing a bit.

 _Wow, she blushes...a lot,_ Jeremi thought to himself. _It's kinda cute!_ He then saw Ash training with his Pokémon and thought of something.

"Kameel! Weren't you holding a Poké Ball in the Pokémon Center? What did you do with it?" Jeremi asked his best buddy, who was busy talking away with Serena.

"Huh? Oh, yeah! It's right here," he replied. He showed it to Jeremi and tossed it up in the air. A Jolteon appeared. "Oh! Cool, a Jolteon!"

"I wish I had a Pokémon..." Jeremi said. He felt his pockets. Right in there was one single Poké Ball. He threw it out. "Go, Poké Ball!" A Vaporeon appeared. "Whoa, this Pokémon is awesome!" He petted it, and the Vaporeon smiled and shook itself a bit.

"Hey, Ash!" Kameel shouted towards the raven-haired trainer. "Let's have a battle!" The word "battle" had seemed to catch his attention.

"Alright, you're on!" He accepted Kameel's challenge.

"Alright," Serena said. "I think I'd like to try to be referee, if that's okay? I've seen enough people do it that I'd like to try it myself..."

"What? You'd like to be referee, Serena?" Clemont inquired after looking up from his work, shocked by this request.

"Well, why not? After all, there's a rumor that the next showcase will be based around the theme of battling, so I might as well try to practice for it," she responded. She dashed off, and then came back in a black-and-white striped top and skirt. Her referee outfit, as she called it.

"This battle will be a 1-on-1 match with no substitutions," she exclaimed. "The last Pokémon standing will be deemed the winner!" Serena, though a little bit nervous, felt like she knew what she was doing. And to Ash and Kameel, almost anything Serena did was spot on, no matter how well she actually did.

"Well then, battle..."

Ash and Kameel had their Poké Balls at the ready. Neither of them was going to give in. Jeremi sat down on the bench conveniently near the battlefield.

"Be—gin!" Serena shouted enthusiastically.

"Go, Talonflame!" Ash had sent out his bird Pokémon, and Kameel then knew what choice to make – his only choice, his only Pokémon.

"Alright, Jolteon, I choose you!" He threw out his Eeveelution's Poké Ball, and the spiky yellow creature appeared right in front of Kameel.

"Alright, Talonflame – now, Steel Wing!" Ash's Pokémon obeyed his every command. It was fast, and Kameel knew that fast usually meant deadly. _If this move hits Jolteon, the amount of damage it would do is very high...in which case, my only options are to dodge it or counter it...or both!_

"Come on, Jolteon! Dodge, and then, Thunderbolt!" The pointy cat barely dodged Ash's bird, and had very little time to charge up a Thunderbolt. But it tried, and a small beam of electricity was fired towards Talonflame. But before the move could hit…

 _ **BAM!**_

"Battle, halt!" Serena called. "What was that?!"

"The Thunderbolt misfired and hit something in the distance," Jeremi suggested. "It's the only reasonable thing. After all, Talonflame looks fine."

"Right. Talonflame, return!" Ash called. In a spectacular red flash, the Pokémon was gone once again. "Pikachu, come here, buddy!"

"Pika pika!" The yellow mouse had dashed to it's Trainer's side, ready for a fight.

"I'm not having Jolteon come back," Kameel remarked. "We may need it's help."

"Clemont!" Bonnie called. Clemont looked behind himself to see his little sister darting right for the group. "Something's happened over in the woods!" She pointed to a bunch of trees with a pillar of smoke rising.

"We better go investigate," Jeremi stated. He feared that whatever was ahead might be dangerous. _Too_ dangerous. "But be careful, we don't want anyone to get hurt..." _Well, we don't want Serena to get hurt…_ he commented in his mind. He didn't dare say this aloud.

"Come on, guys!" Kameel called. Serena, still wearing her referee outfit, ran to grab her backpack.

"Serena, we don't have time for this!" Ash called.

"I know, but my Poké Balls! I need them!" she responded worriedly.

"You guys go," Kameel said. "I'll stay here, and wait for Serena."

"Alright, whatever you say," Jeremi responded. Ash nodded and ran off, with Jeremi, Clemont and Bonnie not too far behind. _I should have stayed here, with her,_ he told himself. _Now Kameel gets time with Serena by himself…_

"Alright, I'm ready!" she told the boy. The two started running, to catch up to Jeremi, Ash and the others. They ran towards the smoke, only to nearly run off of a cliff.

"Whoaoaoa!" Kameel cried. Serena had run a little too far, and she was sliding down the cliff. Kameel had to act fast, or the young performer would be doomed. He made a pretty gutsy move, and reached out his hand and grabbed hers. She looked up at him and sighed, though it was a happy sigh, and she blushed just a tiny bit. Kameel was blushing madly, and Serena chuckled. He pulled her up to safety, and she threw herself in to Kameel's arms, much to his surprise. His face was red with embarrassment, and Serena winked at him and then got back on her own feet, running towards the smoke.

 _Did that really just happen?!_ Kameel asked himself. _Because if so, that was amazing! Definitely the best moment of my life, by far._ He quickly caught up to Serena, and they were nearing the smoke. Little did they know there were nearly impossible to see rocks on the ground and they tripped, and down they went, they fell down to yet another cliff, only this time it looked like it was more of the result of an explosion. They were wobbling, and though he liked it, Kameel didn't want what had just happened to happen again. He mindlessly grabbed Serena's hand, making sure she didn't fall. _Why did I just do that?! Oh my God…_

Serena smiled and looked at Kameel, as if she was going to fling herself at him once again. And while that probably would've been great for the boy, he was against it for now. They had more important matters at hand. They carefully walked around the edges of the cliff, getting closer to the dark pillars of air.

"You know, Kameel..." Serena started. "I've got a feeling..." The boy shuddered. He had just made his crush on the young girl way more apparent and obvious than he wanted to. He felt like this was going to be something Serena would be able to use against him, to bribe him. Not like he'd disagree with Serena anyway. _Dammit! I need to get my mind off of her...which, to be fair, is impossible, if she's standing right in front of you!_

He knew that she was just teasing him with the hug earlier but he still loved it. For all he knew her true love was with Ash, and it was probably going to stay that way.

Suddenly, the very ground that was keeping them alive by a thread began to violently shake and tremble. _Oh, shit!_ Kameel thought to himself. _We're gonna…_

He didn't need to finish his thought.

 _…faaalllll!_

The ground had shook so much, that they ended up falling in to the big pit they were specifically trying to _avoid_.

 _When I told myself that I wanted time with Serena, this is not what I meant!_ Serena had landed in a small pool of water, so despite being wet and nearly ruining her outfit, she was fine. Where as Kameel…he landed right on a rock.

"OwwwwwwAGHH!" he yelled in agony.

"Ah! Kameel, are you okay?!" Serena rushed towards the hurt Trainer.

"No...my leg!" he cried. "It hurts too much…"

Serena grabbed the Poké Ball off of Kameel's belt.

"What are you doing?!" he cried.

"Alright, Jolteon! Come on out!" Serena threw the Poké Ball, and the little Jolteon came out. "Now use Thunderbolt to signal the others!" Little did she know, this was a big mistake.

"Serena!" cried Ash, who had spotted the two in the pit.

"Ash!" she yelled in relief. "Help! Kameel's leg is damaged, pretty bad!"

"Right. I'll get help. You two, stay here! Pikachu, stay here with Serena and Kameel, and help Jolteon with whatever they need, please!"

"Pika pika!" Pikachu cried. It dashed down, towards the small group of friends sitting in the bottom of the pit.

"Well, well, if it isn't the brat girl!" remarked Jessie, one of the members of the evil group Team Rocket. "But who's this?" She grabbed her binoculars, and zoomed in on Kameel. Serena was tending to his leg using whatever she could find, but there wasn't much the poor girl could do. "Well, looks like this injured twerp is down there...and with Pikachu! Well, it just might be our lucky day!"

"Indeed! This is the perfect time to catch Pikachu!" Jessie's friend James added.

"Alright! Maybe the boss will give us a raise….or maybe even… a promotion!" Meowth said.

"Wobbuffet!" said a blue punching-bag thing known as Jessie's annoying "friend", Wobbuffet, which commonly popped out of it's Poké Ball with little to no warning.

"Well then, let's head down there!" Jessie ordered, with a quiet evil laugh. They cautiously treaded down the mountain, towards the group.

"Well, look who we have here, the brat girl!" Jessie teased Serena.

"You guys!" Serena exclaimed in astonishment.

"Jolteon, use...ugh...Thunderbolt on Team….Rocket..!" grunted Kameel, who was still trying to cope with his leg.

Suddenly, the little Pokémon fired a blast of electricity towards Team Rocket.

"Pikachu, you too, use Thunderbolt!" Serena told Ash's Pikachu. He joined in.

"We prepared for one Thunderbolt….but two?!" Meowth exclaimed. "Uh-oh..." And with a brilliant display of yellow and white, the evil team was blasting off...again.

"Thanks, Jolteon. You too, Pikachu." Kameel praised the Pokémon.

"Pika-pi!" Pikachu said with a smile.

"Jolteon!" exclaimed Jolteon, who was proud that it had done something. It nuzzled Pikachu, to say thanks. Pikachu hopped on Jolteon's back, and Jolteon had started to give Pikachu a little ride.

"Well, I guess they're getting along, haha!" Serena joked.

"Yeah," responded the boy. "I hope Ash gets here soon, my leg _really_ hurts..."

"I'm sure he will be," Serena reassured him. _But it shouldn't take him this long…_

 _T_ _o Be Continued_

 _Long chapter! This will probably be one of the longest chapters in the story, so don't expect this length for future chapters. Just sayin'._


	4. Chapter 3 (part 2) - Shadow Force

_Last chapter, Kameel and Serena went on a little adventure. When Kameel hurts his leg, Serena fends off Team Rocket once again. What happens next? Find out in this chapter of Pokémon XY: A Multi-Dimensional Battle for Love!_

"Kameel! Serena!" Ash cried, as he approached the cliff.

"Ash!" shouted the two in unison, as the trainer appeared with Nurse Joy and Officer Jenny by his side.

"Don't worry, you'll be out of there soon," The officer told them. Kameel sighed a sigh of relief, for he could finally get his leg fixed up a bit. He looked at Serena, who was sitting down, taking a rest. Kameel felt kind of guilty, making Serena care for him for a bit, so he spoke up to her.

"Sorry about putting you through that," the boy told her. She glanced over at Kameel.

"No problem, Kameel," she replied with a smile. "Glad to help!"

 _In which case, I could get myself nearly killed and she'd help...no, that's overboard. Let's try to stay safe,_ Kameel thought to himself. Ash's Pikachu and his Jolteon were playing with each other, and the pillar of smoke still stood tall.

"Wow, that smoke looks pretty bad," Serena commented obliviously.

"Yeah," Kameel responded. _Ya think?_

"Here, grab this!" Ash told the two, throwing the end of a rope down towards them.

"Right!" Kameel grabbed on to the rope, and Serena held on to Kameel. As they did their best to climb, the three at the top were pulling as hard as they could.

"Hey! Ash!" panted Clemont, trailing behind Bonnie and Jeremi.

"Come on, Clemont!" Bonnie whined. "We don't got all day, y'know!"

"I'm...here, Bonnie..." the scientist said, with a sigh of relief.

"We could...use...a little...help here..guys!" Ash grunted, pulling harder on the rope.

"Right," Clemont said, and they joined the trainer in pulling up the rope. Just then, Kameel and Serena came flying off the rope in to the air.

"Think we pulled a little too hard, guys..." remarked Jeremi, as the two faceplanted in to the ground.

"That sure didn't help my leg any..." Kameel said. "In fact, it hurt quite a bit..."

 _ **==A little while later...==**_

"So, Clemont, did you guys make it to the site of the smoke?" Kameel asked. "Did you find any information at all?"

"Yes, we did find something..." he replied, digging in to his backpack and pulling out a small black cube of sorts, around the size of a Rubik's Cube. "This little thing sends out some kind of signal, though I haven't been able to understand it."

"Whoa, that's cool!" Ash commented. He was intrigued by the little cube. "But why was it sending out smoke?"

"It wasn't, from we can tell," Jeremi added. "There was something much larger involved. We don't know for sure, but from what I can tell a thing the size of a Rubik's Cube couldn't do nearly that much damage."

"How bad _was_ the damage?" Serena questioned.

"It was really bad!" Bonnie responded, sounding a little shocked. "There were fallen trees everywhere, and rocks all over the place, and there was this huge crater, and..."

"Did you find any clues as to who or what did it?" Kameel asked, who was then interrupted by Ash, who seemed puzzled.

"If you don't mind me asking...what's a Rubik's Cube?" he asked, looking at Kameel and Jeremi.

"Oh, it's this really neat puzzle," he explained. "You have to twist it around correctly so each side is only one color." He proceeded to pull out a small colorful box out of his pocket, and he handed it to the trainer.

"Wow! This is amazing," he exclaimed. He tried turning one of the sides. Then another. And then another. He was spinning the sides like crazy. Serena giggled at the odd sight of the boy she loved furiously playing with a cube. "I quit, this is too hard!" the boy yelled, throwing down the cube. Clemont looked at it a bit, then reached for it. He picked it up, and then inspected it closely. He began to quickly turn the little rows and columns, and everyone gathered around in awe. Within a few minutes, the scientist had the puzzle solved.

"Wow, Clemont! For a slow person you completed that really fast," she teased her older brother.

"Bonnie!" Clemont said, embarrassed a bit.

"So, back on track," Kameel announced loudly.

"Right. The only evidence we have of anything currently is this small line of text in this corner. It reads... _Property of the Shadow Force._ " Clemont informed. Serena shuddered. That name...it brought back some strange memories. She quickly dismissed the thought.

After a few hours of explaining the mystery of the cube, they finally decided to take a break. Ash fell asleep, and Serena had gone off once again to practice performing. Instead of obsessing over Serena and her perfectness as the boys would often do, they instead sat down in the sun holding some kind of gray brick.

"What are those?" Bonnie asked, looking up from petting Dedenne.

"These? Oh, these are called Game Boys," responded Jeremi matter-of-factly. Clemont put his tools down and came over to see.

"Well...what do they do?" he asked. _Something I haven't seen,_ he thought to himself. _I wonder what they're like on the inside…_

"They play games. They're pretty old and considered outdated, but they're really fun," added Kameel, who did not pause his game of _Tetris_ in time and turned his system off in anger. "I'll show you some." Just then, Serena came over.

"How's your performance going?" Jeremi inquired, and he was starting to get a bit nervous, and Kameel too was getting nervous.

"Huh?" Serena was caught a bit off guard by the question. "Oh, I'm doing great," she answered, with a smile.

 _What a cute smile,_ thought Kameel, looking at Serena's face. _Oh, she's perfect. She could be mine, if I play my cards right…._ He then flashed back to the hug. _That moment...it felt so – right. It felt like a dream._

"That's great! Can't wait until the next Tripokalon!" Jeremi's face lit up.

"Well, back to this," interrupted Kameel. He didn't want anyone to interfere with his shot at Serena. He went on for about half an hour explaining games like _Super Mario Land, Tetris,_ and _Pokémon Red and Blue_.

*==*_-A FEW HOURS LATER-_*==*

"Come on, Ash! Dinner's ready!" the young performer shook Ash awake. She smiled at him when he finally opened his eyes, and he smiled back. She looked around to make sure no one could see, and she kissed him. It was a short kiss on the cheek, but a kiss nevertheless. Ash was astonished, and was blushing madly. Serena too was blushing, but smiling even more. Little did they know…

 _She just...kissed Ash!_ Thought Kameel. _There's little to no hope...but I have to try!_

"Come on, Ashy," Serena teased the trainer. He laughed, but before he could get up and out of bed, Serena dashed away sticking her tongue out. Ash ran after her, with a serious-y smile.

After dinner, the group got in to their tents. Kameel and Jeremi had some time to talk with each other before bed, and they enjoyed that.

"So, dude," Jeremi started. "Some strange shit's been going on, huh? I mean, first we get sucked in to the Pokémon world, now there's some strange 'Shadow Force' theories going on? I mean, what the hell's next?"

"I don't know, but even in this craziness I'm still loving every minute of it," Kameel told his best friend. "And damn, is that girl hot..." Kameel should've known saying that was one of the biggest mistakes he'd ever make.

"What...what...WHAT did you say?!" Jeremi was mad. "You think _you're_ going to get Serena?! Hell no!"

"Oh, good luck taking a shot, you'll never even make it halfway!" A huge debate started.

 _With the mystery of the Shadow Force at hand, some trouble is brewing in the world of love for our two friends. Are these friends – friends no more? Find out in the next chapter of Pokémon XY: A Multi-Dimensional Battle for Love!_

 _Next chapter will be short, I've devoted a bit too much to this story. Mirror Adventures needs some love too!_


	5. Chapter 4 - Familiar Faces

_Last time in Pokémon XY: A Multi-Dimensional Battle for Love, our two best friends have discovered each other had a crush on the same girl. Now not only are these two boys fighting, but even more problems to come. What problems? Find out in this next chapter!_

"Are you guys okay?" Ash inquired, the two boys were sitting back to back, in complete silence. "You haven't been talking much..to anyone." The two boys looked at Ash, scowled, and went back to their Game Boys. Ash was a bit shocked. He didn't do anything...did he? "Come on, guys," he added. "What happened?" They looked at Ash and seem to motionlessly direct him to Serena. A thought came to his mind. _They both want...her. They both want Serena...and now I'm in the middle._

"Hey guys! Check this out!" Clemont called to the boys. They walked over to the scientist. "There's a battle competition going on nearby," he informed them. "'Every trainer welcome.' If you want to get there, we better get going, it starts soon!"

"Right!" the trainers nodded.

 _Maybe this will get their minds off Serena,_ Ash thought to himself happily. _That girl is mine._

"A battle competition?" Serena heard what they were talking about and for some reason seemed somewhat interested. "I think I'll join, too!"

 _WHAT?!_ Ash cried in his head. _Oh, no, no-no-no-no-no-no…_

"Well then, let's go!" Kameel cried, with a smile on his face. He had seemed to forget about his crush for while. Jeremi had done the same.

The group was on the road, until they heard a voice…

"Well, well! Look who it is!" said a girly voice from not too far away.

"Who's there?" Ash called. _That voice sounds strangely familiar…_

"You didn't recognize me?" a girl popped out from a bush. She had blue hair, similar to the color of one of Ash's previous companions, Dawn _._

 _"_ Oh, great," Serena said sarcastically. "Miette." _What is she doing here? Was she stalking us?_

"Oh, hi Miette!" Bonnie greeted the girl, and Miette smiled and waved back to her. Serena rolled her eyes.

"Miette, I want you to meet these two," Ash informed her. "These are Kameel and Jeremi, they're from another world."

"What?!" Miette was astonished. "Well, nice to meet you guys!" She shook each of their hands, and blushed a bit when she shook Kameel's.

 _Oh great, not only are my best friend and Ash and I competing for Serena, now this girl has a crush on me,_ Kameel thought. _Just what I needed – more love issues._

"Headed to the battle competition too?" Miette asked. The trainers nodded, and she smiled. "Well then, come on!" She ran ahead, towards a big building.

"Wow!" Jeremi remarked. "This place is huge!"

"He's right!" Serena added. A huge blue dome stood right in front of the group, with flashing lights inside and on the top. "This looks so cool!"

The group of trainers walked inside, and signed up. Clemont and Bonnie didn't sign up, because Bonnie wasn't eligible and Clemont needed to keep an eye on his little sister. She could get in to some mischief if she was left unattended, despite the fact she was very mature for a girl her age. The trainers got small bracelets and put them around their wrists. In a matter of minutes Poké Balls were flying through the air as all of their Pokémon came out.

"Eee!" squealed Serena's Eevee, full of fear. It ducked behind Clemont's Bunnelby. Bunnelby looked at it and smiled, and Eevee smiled back. Suddenly, a loud noise came from the speakers.

"Hello, everyone!" yelled an announcer through a microphone. "If we could please have your attention for a few moments!" They all looked behind them, and there was a man on a stage with a huge, expensive-looking screen.

"Welcome to the annual battle competition!" he boomed, and the crowd started cheering. "This year, we have something special planned! We are pleased to announce that this year we will be doing tag battles!" The crowd cheered some more. "We will be placing you randomly, so please wait as we roll off the teams!"

The group waited...and waited...and waited. Names were called, none were important. Then…

"Our next team is...Jeremi and Wind!" he called. Jeremi looked up, and he had been paired with another trainer he didn't know. A few more names were called off until the announcer called…

"Serena and Ash!" the announcer declared. Ash and Serena hugged each other, but quickly broke apart when they remembered they were in public. Jeremi and Kameel rolled their eyes, and Ash shot them a look, as if to tease and torment them. The two grumbled, and went back to what they were doing.

"…and our final team is...Kameel and Miette!"

Miette was happy, but Kameel was a little pissed off. _God damn it! Why must this happen to me?!_

"And may the battles..."

Suspense began building up in the dome. Everyone had their Pokémon at the ready.

"….beeee-GIN!"

"Alright, Ash, Serena, let's do this!" Kameel challenged the two. "Let's go, Jolteon!"

"Come on out Slurpuff!" Miette called, throwing a Poké Ball in to the air. In a flash of white, a small Pokémon appeared.

"Frogadier!" Ash called. His Pokémon was ready. "Ready?"  
"Frog-a!" his Pokémon responded, ready to fight.

"Braixen, let's take the stage!" Serena cried, and her partner came to her side.

"Braix-en!"

"Heh," Kameel laughed. "This will be fun. Jolteon, Thunderbolt on Frogadier!"

"Jol-tee!" A spectacular beam of light hit the Pokémon directly, dealing a decent amount of damage.

"Oh, no you don't," Serena said. "Braixen, Flamethrower!"

"Alright, Slurpuff!" Miette ordered. "Energy Ball on Frogadier!"

"Wha—why are you targeting _me_?!" Ash complained. "Alright, Frogadier, dodge it and then use Double Team!"

"Oh, come on!" Kameel yelled. _He's going to be cheap, now,_ _i_ _s he?_ _I might as well be cheap too!_ "Jolteon, Thunderbolt, straight up!" After looking a bit confused, Jolteon glanced at it's trainer, and then realized what it needed to. It then began to lower it, but it was interrupted rather quickly.

"Uh..guys?" Serena caught their attention. "We're still in the lobby."

The trainers then walked out to one of the small battlefields in the front.

"Ready to fight again?" Kameel asked.

"Ready as I'll ever be," Ash responded. _Ready as I'll ever be to get the girl._

The battling continued. Each side gained some, lost some, eventually leading up to Miette and Kameel's victory.

"Great job, guys, you battled well!" Kameel went to shake Serena's hand, and then went to shake Ash's hand. Despite being reluctant to do so, he agreed, only to be met with a stare that said _This is not anything close to a truce._

MEANWHILE…

"Well, that sure is a nice Vaporeon ya got there," Wind told Jeremi. Wind was battling with a Torchic, his partner Pokémon. "Oh, Torchic, use Peck!"

The little orange bird obeyed it's trainer, and responded very quickly. It attacked the only remaining Pokémon on the other side, a Volcarona.

"Alright, then! Vaporeon, Water Gun!" Jeremi said. The little creature fired a beam of water towards the Volcarona.

"Good job," Jeremi complimented the opposing trainers. They shook hands and smiled. Wind, on the other hand, had been giving all the Pokémon Poké Puffs, which made the Pokémon happy too.

Alright, ladies and gentlemen, please finish your current battle! boomed the speakers. The competition was almost over, and the two couldn't wait to see the results. Wind tugged on Jeremi's sleeve playfully, and soon the two new friends were in the dome, waiting patiently. Kameel and Miette had walked up next to them, and Ash and Serena weren't too far behind. Clemont and Bonnie had sat down, each with a burger.

"Mmmm...I'm hungry," Ash whined. His stomach was growling.

"You're _always_ hungry, Ash," replied Serena, laughing a bit. She leaned in to his ear and whispered, "I've got something for you when we get back." Ash blushed a bit, then smiled and winked at the girl. Serena winked back, and then gave their attention to the announcer.

"I hope you all had fun and exciting battles!" he exclaimed. "But now we are down to the four best teams in here!" The crowd went wild. "And the first team is…Kameel and Miette!"

"We did it!" Kameel pumped his fist, and Miette smiled.

"Jolt-ee!" Kameel's partner exclaimed.

"We made it, buddy!" he rubbed his Pokémon, being careful as to not get shocked.

"And the second team is...Jeremi and Wind!"

"We did it!" the two high-fived and cheered. They listened patiently for the third team.

"The third team is…Ash and Serena!"

The two trainers hugged each other, and Serena discretely kissed Ash on the cheek. Ash, much to Serena's surprise, kissed her back. Serena's face turned in to a mad red, and she was obviously quite taken aback, yet so happy and so nervous at the same time. She wanted to tighten her grip on to her boy, but she had to separate, much to her dismay.

"The final team is…Arianna and Shauna!" the announcer boomed.

"What?!" Serena was astonished. Her friend Shauna, and the Kalos Queen Aria (in disguise as Arianna) took place in the Battle Competition too?! Miette was shocked too, though not as much, as she had no idea who Arianna really was. But she did know Shauna.

"And for our final event, we will deem two winners!" the announcer exclaimed with enthusiasm. "The final event will be a 4 on 4 match with no substitutions!"

"A FOUR-ON-FOUR?!" Ash, Kameel, Jeremi and Wind were all shocked. This battle really meant business, apparently.

"And the teams are..."

Everyone was on the edge of their seat, especially Bonnie and Clemont. Their friends were competing against each other!

"Kameel and Miette with Ash and Serena versus Jeremi and Wind with Shauna and Arianna!"

"What luck," Clemont exclaimed in surprise. "The fact that these are the match-ups will make this pretty interesting."

 _Our heroes are ready for battle, and best friends are being turned against each other! What will happen next? Find out in the next chapter of Pokémon XY: A Multi-Dimensional Battle for Love!_


	6. Chapter 5 - Battle, Begin!

_Last chapter, our heroes were pitted against each other in a 4-on-4 Pokémon battle. As the rivalry between our two friends continues to grow, Ash may have some tricks up his own sleeve. With that, let's get this chapter of Pokémon XY: A Multi-Dimensional Battle for Love started!_

"You're going _down, Jeremi_!" Kameel taunted. "You'll never make it!"

"We'll see about that, _loser!_ " Jeremi retorted.

"Ready, Serena?" Ash asked his companion. "This isn't going to be easy, with 8 Pokémon out at once!"

"Right," Serena replied, deep in thought. _I have to battle with one of my greatest enemies and battle against two of my friends. Don't worry, Serena. You can do this._

 _"_ Okay, Miette?" Kameel looked at his partner. She nodded, with a firm grip on a Poké Ball.

"Hey Serena!" yelled Arianna. Serena looked over, and smiled when she saw her friend wave to her.

"Hey Aria...nna!" Serena yelled back, forgetting that the Kalos Queen's name couldn't be revealed. She had called herself Arianna for a reason, Serena remembered.

"Well, Serena, good luck!" called her friend Shauna, who had entered the competition without Serena knowing. _Huh, how did she get here?_

"So, Wind, are you prepared?" Jeremi asked his new friend. He was petting his Vaporeon, while Wind fed Torchic.

"Of course I am!" he responded. "Ready as I could possibly be!"

"On your marks, battlers!" called the announcer. "Get ready to fight!"

"3..."

Ash and Serena grabbed each other's hands, and they used their free hand to grab their Poké Balls.

"2..."

Arianna and Shauna looked at each other, then looked at their new battle partners, Wind and Jeremi. They glanced back, with a smile of determination.

"1..."

Kameel's eyes were filled with determination. He wanted to win this. Why? He thought that if he battled hard enough, Serena would notice. _Oh, how I wish I could relive that amazing moment…_ Kameel thought to himself, flashing back to the cliff, but was quickly startled...

"BE-GIN!"

The crowd started cheering, and the battle was on. Everyone was in it to win it. Flashes of white light appeared in the arena, with the Trainers' Pokémon flying out of their Poké Balls.

"Alright, Braixen!" Serena ordered. "Flamethrower on Ivysaur!"  
"Not on my watch!" Arianna cried. "Delphox! Fire Spin!"

"Hmph, while you guys take care of that, I'll sit here destroying Kameel!" Jeremi said, burning with rage and determination. _I—I've never felt so...alive. I feel as if this is the most pumped I've ever been for a battle!_

"Alright, Vaporeon!" Jeremi commanded his little Pokémon. "Water Gun!"

"Well, in that case," said Kameel. "Thunderbolt, Jolteon! Now!"

"Jol-teeeEEE!" cried the spiky yellow creature. A brilliant flash of white light came hurling towards the opposing Water Gun. It pushed through the water, striking Vaporeon and dealing massive damage.

"Vaporeon is unable to battle! This means that Jeremi is out of the battle!" announced the referee. Jeremi covered his face in shame.

"Don't worry, Jeremi," reassured Wind. "I got this!"

"Alright, Pikachu!" Ash commanded. "Electro Ball on Torchic!"

"WHAT?!" Wind was shocked that Ash had chosen to attack his Torchic.

"Torchic! Peck it back!"

The little orange fluffy bird dove towards the ball of energy flying towards it. It barely managed to send it back but it still took damage from it a little bit.

"Pikachu! Iron Tail on the ball!" It had been fired back.

Soon, the battle had become a small ping pong game of sorts.

While Ash and Wind continued back and forth, Kameel had gone to help Miette and Serena with Ivysaur and Delphox.

"Serena," Kameel commented. "Use Fire Blast on Ivysaur. It should help!" Serena nodded, and she gave the thumbs-up to Kameel. He winked, and she had her eyes set on the battle.

"Alright, Braixen!" she said, and her Pokémon knew what to do without being told.

"What's it doing?!" gasped the Kalos Queen, who was worried. _She didn't announce what move she was using on who...it could be any of us!_

Soon, a spectacular burst of fire hit Shauna's Ivysaur. The Pokémon had suffered severely, but it managed to weakly get up.

"Alright, Serena," Arianna teased. "Maybe that cute little smile of yours would be better GONE!" Aria had grown almost angry, her eyes becoming devilishly red.

 _Never knew she had_ _such_ _a competitive side,_ Serena thought. _This ought to be fun!_

"Delphox!" she yelled. "Flamethrower!"  
"Braixen!" Serena yelled. "Dodge it, and then send a Flamethrower back!" The two Pokémon had attacked each other, until the two Flamethrowers collided.

"Oooh!" said the audience. It was a remarkable sight with the light and sparks of the fire combining.

 _I could use this somehow for my next Showcase!_ Serena thought to herself.She started to dream of her next performance, but then remembered the fact that there was a huge battle going on.

"DELPHOX!" Arianna cried. Braixen had somehow managed to overpower the Queen's partner.

"Delphox is unable to battle!" announced the referee. "This means that Arianna is out of the battle!"

"But...how..." whispered the girl, collapsing soullessly. The Kalos Queen had fainted right out on the spot. Now Shauna was angry. Her eyes were raging, showing no mercy.

"Jolteon! Quick Attack on Torchic!" cried the Pokémon's trainer. It began moving. At least, they thought it was moving. It was going so fast it was impossible to see.

 _No...not like this,_ Wind had started to sweat. _I-I—I can't even see it, how am I supposed to be able to attack or dodge it?!_

"Alright!" Kameel cried. "LET'S FINISH THIS! THUNDERBOLT!" he was pumped. TOO pumped. Not only was Jolteon unable to be seen, it was going really fast AND charging up a Thunderbolt! Soon, Wind was down. He could battle no longer. The Quick Attack combined with the Thunderbolt, which was super-effective towards his Torchic, had defeated him.

"Well, this side only has one Trainer and Pokémon left, I wonder how this will go!" said the announcer.

"Kameel, Serena," Ash told them. "You guys take a rest. We'll finish this!"

"Right," the two replied, nodding. They sat down, and glanced at each other.

 _Who do I want?_ Serena thought to herself. _Ash, he's the reason I came here, but...Kameel's nice too…_

Shauna had aggressively ordered Ivysaur to non-stop Vine Whip Pikachu, in an attempt to capture it and defeat it. Pikachu just couldn't be bothered, countering with Quick Attacks, Iron Tails, Thunderbolts and Electro Balls. Soon, the little green plant Pokémon was tired and collapsed.

"Ivysaur is unable to battle, so Shauna is out of the battle! This means that this side WINS!" the announcer was enthusiastic, and he got up to greet the winners. Miette was gone, no where to be seen.

 _That's peculiar,_ Serena thought to herself. _Miette was here a little while ago!_

After about an hour of shaking hands, talking, laughing, and good-byes, the crew left, on their way back.

"So, Ashy," Serena whispered to her boy. "I told you I had something for you."

"Huh?" Ash seemed to have forgotten, although he remembered he was hungry, and thought back. "Oh, yeah." He blushed a bit, and glanced over at the girl standing next to him. _She's so cute,_ he thought to himself. _She's just too pretty and cute to ignore, isn't she?_

Serena took Ash by the hand and the two ran away, while everyone else was resting a bit. They ran off in to the woods a bit, where they were unspottable. She then reached in to her pocket, grinning at Ash.

"Well," Serena grabbed his attention. "Here you go!" The trainer looked at the small bag in her hands. _Cookies!_ He thought. He took it from her, and opened it.

But…these weren't cookies.

Inside were two Love Balls. Ash's eyes opened wide, and a huge smile grew on his face.

"Thank you, Serena!" he cried, and dived for her, with his arms out wide. The performer was surprised, but she loved it. She held him in her own arms.

"Of course, Ashy," she replied. She was blushing, and Ash held her tight.

"Thank you, really, thank you!"

Serena looked around herself. No one but Ash. She leaned over towards him, and within seconds, she caught Ash in a kiss. "I love you, Ash."

Ash blushed, and then smiled. It was apparent that a few tears were falling from his eyes. "I love you too, Serena."

After a moment, Serena looked up at the sky. It was a nice dark blue, with streaks of orange.

"Well, we should probably head back," the girl told her crush. "It's getting dark." She was sad that this moment had to end.

"Awww," the trainer replied.

"Before we go..." Serena interrupted. She grabbed one of the Love Balls and a marker. She wrote her name, then kissed the ball, leaving a lipstick stain. She continued to draw a small heart next to her name. "For you, Ash." She blushed, and she handed the ball back to him. Ash was speechless.

"I guess we should get going," Ash quickly stated, as to break the silence. The two stood up, and the boy grabbed Serena's hand. Serena was surprised, but she tightened her grip on his hand. They walked back to meet with the others.

Serena and Ash had gotten back, and everyone got ready for bed. Jeremi was still pissed off that he lost, but he knew that he could feel a bit better, since he knew he would see his friend Wind again.

"Good night, guys! Great job today with the battle!" Kameel yelled

Serena was lost in thought. She was tossing and turning constantly, making Bonnie just roll around. _She sleeps so peacefully_. _Why can't I sleep like that?_ She remembered the events. The battles, the winning...but even worse, Arianna and Shauna. _What happened? When they lost, they just fell to the floor. No warning, no sound. They just...fell. And then there's Miette...maybe her disappearing had something to do with this…_ She fell asleep in to a hellish dream.


	7. Chapter 6 - Darkness

"Where...am...I?" Shauna said to herself, not recognizing where she was. "What...happened?"

 _"Welcome, Shauna,"_ said a deep voice, _"to your new home."_

"What?!" she replied in a shriek, barely standing up. "I don't know who you are, but I...I...I…I will get out! I will get out...somehow! I don't know how but I will!" the girl was getting angry with this voice, and she refused to be cooperative.

 _"Oh, really?"_ the voice inquired, with a snicker. _"You think you'll make it out of here?"_

"Of course, I'm not losing to someone like you! I couldn't!" she stomped around, starting to act somewhat childish. "Ivysaur, come on-" she stopped, realizing she didn't have any of her Poké Balls on hand. "Wha?!"

 _"You helpless little soul,"_ the voice said.

"You monster!" Shauna cried. "This is not over yet!"

 _"You truly are quite unintelligent,"_ he replied back. _"Meet some of my little friends. Come on, everyone, don't be shy."_

Two girls emerged from the darkness.

"Aria?!" The little trainer was shocked. The Kalos Queen, Aria, was right here, under this dude's control! Miette too had come out with her, too.

 _"Now-now, you know what to do!"_ the voice commanded. The two girls each brought out a Poké Ball of sorts. It was black, and had dark purple swirls on the top. The little button on the front was a shiny dark gray.

 _"Alright, NOW!"_

The pair of soulless girls pressed the button on their Poké Balls, and a bright purple light engulfed Shauna. As soon as the light was gone, all was black, once again.

==Meanwhile==

"Are you okay, Serena?" Serena was asleep, breathing heavily and rapidly tossing and turning. Ash kept trying to keep her still, but the poor girl couldn't stand whatever was happening. At one point, she ended up screaming, only to be silenced by Ash covering her mouth. Bonnie had gone to sleep with her big brother, and the boy trainer took her place.

"Please, Serena, you'll be alright," Ash tried to comfort the performer, but it didn't do anything. She continued to thrash around. "Just calm down, and go to sleep, everything will be okay in the morning." He whispered to her, and he wrapped his arms tightly around the girl. Serena instantly silenced, and then all was quiet. Ash pulled her down, with him, and they fell asleep.

==Serena's dream==

"Where am I?! Why am I here?!" she was on the verge of tears. "Please! Someone...anyone! Help!" she cried for help, as loud as she could. But she was in total blackness. She was all alone. "B-b-b—Braxien?" she stuttered, attempting to grab her Pokémon's Poké Ball. Only to find that it wasn't there.Serena looked around and started to run. She noticed that as she ran, the walls kept pushing back. She couldn't outrun them.

"Please...please...just let me out of here..." she sat down and started to cry. "Please! I just want to get out of here!"

 _"_ _Well, well, looky here,"_ said a dark, deep voice. _"Serena."_

"Huh? Who is it?!" she was glad there was someone else here, but this person didn't seem like someone she'd want to be all alone with. She saw what looked like Ash walk towards her, out of the shadows.

"Ash!" she was so happy. She wasn't alone. "Oh, Ash, I missed you..." she darted towards him, only to be pushed back by some force. She landed on her feet after being knocked back, but she looked pretty mad. "What the _hell_ , Ash?!"

 _"_ _Haha,"_ he laughed a bit. _"You really think that I cared about you? You honestly think that ANYONE thought you had anything going for you?"_

"Wh...wh...what are you saying, Ash?!" Tears were starting to form in her eyes. _This isn't true, this isn't true, this isn't true…_ she kept trying to tell herself. _Ash would never say this!_

 _"_ _Are you stupid?"_ he replied, a bit louder than usual. _"I'm saying that we had no choice but to ask you to come with us! No one likes you, Serena! You're just some hopeless idiot that we felt sorry for!"_

"..." Serena fell to the ground on her hands and knees, her face covered in tears. She couldn't say anything – she didn't have anything to say. She stood up, wiping the tears from her eyes. She looked towards Ash, only to find he had gone. She sat there and thought about all of the memories...Winning Tripokalons. Catching her first Pokémon. Cutting her hair. The ribbon that Ash had given her. Catching Eevee. Meeting Fennekin. All of her memories.

And she let them go.

==Out of the dream==

Serena woke up, panting heavily. She saw Ash by her side, hugging her tightly.

"Serena! I'm so glad you're al-"

BAM!

Serena elbowed Ash in the face as hard as she could. Ash was covering his bleeding nose, trying to hold back tears.

"Serena?! What is it?!" Ash let the tears out, crying in pain. The girl, who had become rather hostile, kicked him down, then continued to stomp on him.

"Serena! Please! Stop!" Ash cried, and tried to yell for help, but the performer had kicked Ash in the mouth before he could say anything understandable.

"Morning, Ash, morning Serena," Kameel had woken up, and he was in a decent mood.

Serena walked towards him, and then slapped him in the face.

"Come on, Serena! I just woke up!" he joked a bit, realizing that this was a bad idea.

"Great," she said. She pounded on him, until he was down on the ground.

"Se...re...na…." he cried, he was whimpering in agony. "What's...gotten...in...to...you..."

Serena ran in to the tent, and grabbed her bag. She grabbed her Poké Balls, and ran. Away from the group. In to the woods. Far, far, away.

"What's going on?" Clemont popped out of his tent, preventing Bonnie from going out so she didn't get hurt. He glanced at Ash and Kameel, and instantly dashed out with medical tools.

In a few hours, Kameel and Ash were back and standing.

"So what happened?" the scientist asked the two.

"Well, Serena was having some sort of bad dream last night..." Ash stated. "She was tossing and turning and crying and screaming, so I went to comfort her. We fell asleep, and when I woke up, she elbowed me in the face, and then kicked me down and stomped on me...still hurts from that..."

"That doesn't sound like Serena at all!" Bonnie remarked, shocked that her best friend would do something like that. "Serena's a nice, calm person! She'd never hurt someone like that! Especially you, Ash." She smirked, and Ash's face grew red with embarrassment.

"What?!" Clemont too was shocked. "Kameel?"  
"Well, I woke up, said good morning to the two, and then she slapped me in the face, way harder than I ever thought was possible."

"Interesting," Clemont replied. Jeremi was still fast asleep. _Thank Arceus he's still asleep, he would've gotten hurt too._

==The woods==

 _What have I done?_ Serena cried to herself. _Why did I do that? Ash was in tears, bawling, and I just...made the pain worse! What have I turned in to?_

She thought about it, and lay up against a tree. The tears in her eyes started to form, until she remembered what Ash had said. She got right back up, and ran farther.

"There's no turning back now."


	8. Chapter 7 (part 1) - Rise

I know it's been a while, so let's skip the introduction and dive right in!

Everything had seemed so real. But whether it actually _was_ real, she didn't even know. She was filled with too much anger to think about anything else at all. She had just beat up the one she considered her best and closest friend, and now she had abandoned them altogether. She couldn't get herself together, no matter how hard she tried. She kept on moving, never stopping. She felt like she had locked herself in an infinite loop of just running. Running from her past, running from her mistakes, running from her accomplishments. Running from everything.

Meanwhile, Ash and his companions were running, too. Only, to _find_ Serena, not to get away from her. They were worried. They had no idea what Serena had experienced, and they figured that it was best to find out. After running for a while, they stopped to take a break.

"Where could Serena be?" Bonnie whined. The performer was her best friend, after all.

"I don't know, but wherever she is, Arceus knows what she's doing," Clemont responded. "She seemed really upset about something. I've never seen her angry before...who knows what she's like."

"Yeah, and considering the way she just acted, that wasn't a very good first impression," replied Kameel, who still felt a decent amount of pain.

"Well, we can't just sit around all day, we've got things to do, places to see...and performers to find," remarked Ash, who was just finishing getting ready to head back out again. He grabbed his Poké Balls, but suddenly, threw himself in to a panic. "Pikachu? Piiikaachuuu? Pikachu, where are you buddy?!"

"Pikachu's missing?!" Jeremi exclaimed. "Where the hell could he have run off to?!"

"That's what I'm wondering, too!" Kameel stated. He was about to suggest something to him, only to get cut off by the scientist.

"Wait a minute, Bonnie, see if Dedenne can find him!" His little sister nodded, only for the group to become even _**more**_ surprised.

"Dedenne's gone, too!" the child shouted.

"What?!" the group was shocked.

"What the hell is going on here, this is insane!" the two real-worlders were pacing around, thinking hard.

"We've gotta go look!" Ash cried, grabbing his bag and tossing Kameel and Jeremi theirs. "Let's go!"

"Right!"

~^*^-_~Meanwhile~_-^*^~

Serena had slowed down quite a bit, she had become tired. She was going to set up camp, only to realize that the others still had a few of her things, such as her tent and sleeping bag.

"Well, shit!" she angrily cursed, kicking a piece of wood nearby. "The hell am I supposed to do now? No friends, no food, no shelter, and my navigator is crushed to pieces. It's hopeless. Just...just...why? Why'd I have to be so angry, so...careless?"

 _"Now now, dear, there's no need to be so nervous,"_ some voice came out of nowhere.

"Great! Not only have I lost all my friends, anything remotely close to 'safety', I'm also hearing voices in my head. How could the day get any better?" she said, tears emerging out of her eyes.

 _"'Voice in your head'? Oh no, I'm much more than that."_

"Who are you, and what do you want with me?!" the frightened girl screamed.

 _"Oh, you'll see, little one."_

"What do you mean, 'little o-" And with that, Serena blacked out.


	9. Chapter 7 (part 2) - Fall

Serena opened her eyes. Well, she thought she did. All around her was an all too familiar black, a darkness rivaled by nothing ever before. She was unaware of her mental state, be it awake or asleep, or even alive. A sense of panic lingered in her mind, but on the surface she was calm and ready for her fate from this point on. The blackness that had consumed her remained solid and cold, but Serena simply stayed put, giving no response to the conditions around her.

 _"_ _So, here you are, for the first and last time._ " the voice said. This voice had some resemblance to the voice she had heard in her dream, the one coming from Ash. _"You're doing quite well handling this situation. But if it's alright with you, I'll take it from here."_ Silently, Serena became shrouded with a mystical light, a bright purple. She soon faded into the darkness of the room itself.

 _"Welcome to the Shadow Force,"_ the voice said.

===Meanwhile...===

During their search for Serena, the group had searched the entirety of the woods. There was not a single soul in sight.

"Great," Kameel sighed. "Just great! What are we supposed to do now?!"

"Let's go back to the tents, eat something, and we'll work from there," Clemont replied.

"Sounds good to me, I could eat!" Ash said cheerfully.

"We're in the middle of what could be considered a crisis, and you're thinking about food?!" Jeremi scolded. "Well, I guess I'm kinda with you there..."

They started on their way back to the tents. But when they got there, they were greeted with a surprise.

"What the hell?" Kameel remarked.

There was nothing there. All of their stuff had just vanished without a trace. Ash ran up to their former spot, only to slam into an invisible wall of sorts.

"Ow..." Ash said, brushing himself off.

Clemont walked over to inspect the barrier. It covered the entirety of where their setup was. He could see the ground and the area that it covered, but he could not make any contact with it.

Kameel had had enough, and tried to take down the barrier. "Come on out, Jolteon!" he cried. But the Poke Ball opened up...empty.

The trainers looked curiously at the open ball. Jolteon was not in it, plain and simple. They were...confused, to say the least.

Then suddenly, it clicked.

"There's an odd trend," Jeremi stated. "It appears that any Electric-type Pokemon have mysteriously vanished."

"Maybe they have something to do with the barrier," Ash replied.

"That makes a lot of sense. Now, the hardest part of the question, is connecting the barrier to something else."

"I got it!" Clemont yelled. He dug through his bag, pulling out the black cube. He brought it closer to the barrier, and as it got closer to the barrier, it glowed a brighter red. Clemont pulled it away from the barrier, and it became lifeless again. "This cube isn't just a cube. It's a key."

"A...key?" asked Kameel, curious.

"Yes. Now, get ready, because I have no idea what's on the other side!" Clemont pushed the cube onto the barrier, and the forcefield started to cave in. Suddenly, as the cube was fully submerged, the group had been sucked into the world inside the field.


End file.
